


Stranger Stars

by PinkHitman



Category: Voltron: Defender of the Universe, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, More tags later, OC, Original Character - Freeform, Shiro is still missing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-03
Updated: 2017-07-12
Packaged: 2018-09-21 16:41:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9557510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PinkHitman/pseuds/PinkHitman
Summary: It's been weeks, as the crew still searches for any leads as to where Shrio disappeared to. One that Pidge has discovered, leads them to a portal on an abandoned planet, with a mysterious stranger that leads them to be a little more sidetracked. Do they have the answers to where Shiro is? or are they about to open a whole new can of worms.





	1. The Black Portal

**Chapter 1. The Black portal.**

Lance shuffled along the gray wasteland, constant roaming thoughts of the bright colors of home dragging his thoughts further down into hopelessness. The sky, etched with bright shining stars, and several rotating moons was bright green. An almost sickly color that gave Lance an ever growing headache.

“ _I like it_.” Pidge defended over the coms. “ _The universe could use more green_.”

“ _I don’t know Pidge_.” Hunk added. “ _This shade of green is like.. The exact shade of green they use for evil magic in cartoons_.”

“ _So_?”

“ _Quite_!” A very stressed, tired sounding Keith sounded off. “ _We have a mission, let's focus. Pidge what’s the read out say?"_

“ _It's hard to track… the energy source keeps dipping in and out. Like one minute its there, the next gone_.”

“ Are we sure that we need to find this thing?” Lance asked. He wanted to get off this planet and back to training. 

“ _The power of the Black Lion is dimensional_.” Allura explained. “ _Each Lion has an element in which they operate_.”

“ _Can we not use the phrase ‘element’? It offends me_.” Hunk whined.

“ _Hunk_ …” The team moaned back.

“ _What! Elements are base forms. Water takes two elements, fire isn’t an element it's a type of energy, and don’t even get me started on the tree things Pidge makes as well as the rocks I deal with_.”

“ _Hunk_!” The team shouted for him to shut up.

“ _While we understand the difference, we define elements, the lions and their abilities by what tends to make worlds. They are the defenders of many planets. Water, Fire, Stone and Life are what build worlds_.”

Silence.

“ _Yeah okay. I can see that_.”

“ _Thankyou_.” Allura answered before continuing. “ _The black lion is essentially one of space_.”

“ _But_ ,” Pidge started. _“As we all know, space doesn't just mean void space. It can mean different dimensions as well. If his ship power backfired_ -”

“ _We know, Pidge_.” Keith said. Sounding annoyed at first and then softer and more reserved, maybe regretting his tone. 

Lance  was thankful Keith stopped Pidge. He hopped down a ridge, using his hand to slow his descent. The idea that their leader was trapped in another dimension was not a nice idea to sleep with. Sure, it could be a dimension where he wa on vacation with tons of space babes giving him back rubs and whatever, but it could also be a dimension with no air no food and nothing but void. 

  
Lance crossed to the other side of the valley to climb the other side. He wondered if this had been a river at some point. Using his jetpack as a boost, he started climbing the wall.

Allura had made it clear they needed to conserve their suits energy during missions, and to avoid using the jetpack, but Lance was finding it harder and harder to care. It had been a month with no sign of Shiro. At least a month of them looking. There was a week were the team was basically in morning. 

Lance took little pride in being the one to kick everyone's asses and get them back on track. It hurt. He was basically on nanny duty while behind the scenes he skipped nights and meals. 

Keith was the new leader, still adorned in his uniform red armor. Like he had a choice, Shiro disappeared with the black armor. Lance knew for a fact it was something Keith didn’t want. In one of those long nights after he had been made the new leader, Lance had found him outside of Black, wracked with sorrow. While Lance has had reservations on Keith's ability to lead in the past, mostly to do with is temper and inability to think things through at times, He supposed the best leader was maybe one who didn’t want to lead. Lance would just be too prideful for the whole thing, and neither Hunk and Pidge were cut from the right stuff. When the choice had been made for Keith to take the head of Voltron, Lance stood by his side.

Blue was the only one Loyal and trusting enough to allow a new temporary pilot, so Allura took Blue, much to Coran’s concerns.

So now Lance had Red. But that was only if they needed voltron. For now they stuck to their own lions. Black sat waiting in the hanger, bayard waiting in the seat. 

Lance touched down at the top, looking up. Something caught his eye. A flitting figure in the distance.

“ Hey Allura, Is anyone supposed to be on this planet?”

“ _No. It should be abandoned. The only life forms I’m picking up are you fiv- wait_.”

“ _Five_?” Keith called out. “ _There are only four of us down here_.”

“ I think I found number five.” Lance called out in a whisper, pursuing the figure. It couldn’t be Shiro could it. No, it was too small. He moved through the rock, closer and closer. The figure must have noticed because their movements quickened. Lance did two. 

He ascended a rock formation to get a better view, using his scope to get a better visual. 

“ I think its a girl?”

A groan sounded through the coms.

“ _Lance stay put_ ,” Keith ordered. “ _Last thing we need is you flirting with a new enemy_.”

“ How do we eve know she’s an enemy?”

“ _How do we know they’re really a ‘she’?_ ” Pidge added.

“ I’m pursuing.” Lance called out, not listening to his leaders protests. He chased after the figure, slowly gaining. He wondered if they were running from him or something else.

“ Hey! Wait up! We’re friendly! We just wanna talk!” 

The figure turned back and Lance could see that they were wearing a helmet. He was still gaining. 

Weighing his chances at losing his lead on her, he jumped. Using a quick boost from his jetpack to send him crashing into the figure. Their helmet tumbled off as the two rolled into the stone and dirt, sending a cascade of black hair falling into Lance's vision. 

Lance was left pinning the girl. Who he was sure now was a girl. Long raven black hair, a light creamy tan skin and big blue eyes. Big blue eyes that were looking up into his own. Her expression was one of fear, and Lance quickly loosened his grip, sitting back slightly to back away, yet still hold her down.

“ Look I- Im sorry for the rough handling, we just wan’t to ask some questions, about a portal?”

“ _Lance! Did you find them_?” Keith sounded off in his helmet.

“ Yeah, I got her.” 

“ _Okay team, gather to Lance's location_.”

Lance turned his attention back to the girl. She looked so scared and sad. She also looked surprisingly normal. Lance had seen his fair share of humanoid aliens, so sure there was a chance that one would look almost exactly like a human, but Lance still found him searching her features for any oddity, anything that would mark her as a non human. He had to, he felt desperate to, because she… she looked like-

A force struck him in the stomach and suddenly he toppled over, just barely seeing her scramble off and start running away again. Helmet back on.

“ She got away.”

“ _Please don’t tell me she flirted with you and you’re bound to a tree again_.” Pidge said.

“  NO. She just got away. I mean, Is it that hard to think I might not have flirted with her?”

“ _Yes_.” everyone droned together.

“ Whatever. I'm in pursuit again.”

“ _I'm on your eight_.” 

Lance looked back over his left shoulder to see Keith behind him on his speeder. Lance used his jetpack to hop on. They were gaining fast. The girl made a swift duck into some rocks and Keith quickly turned, only to see something familiar shoot out of a small cave. 

“ Is that?”

“ Sparrow.” Keith whispered in disbelief before revving the speeders engen and adjusting to follow.

“ That looks like you’re hover bike from Earth, the one-”

“ It is that bike!”

“ How do you know?”

“ I know my own damn bike Lance! Take the wheel.” Keith stood, hopping to the front of the speeder quickly to allow Lance to scooch up and take control. Lance cut loose, closing the gap between them and the girl. Keith jumped, propelling forward and landing on the back, just before the girl cut loose with a boost of thrust.

Keith gripped tight, she tried shaking him off, flipping and spinning. But Keith held on.

“ STOP RIGHT NOW!” He called out.  He saw the figures neck twitch, almost as if to look back at him before flipping a switch. Suddenly, power like he had never felt from Sparrow vibrated through him and she tilted the turbines causing the bikes nose to jump upwards. They kept climbing. 

Keith knew this bike’s limitations for flight four feet off the ground, no way this was the same bike. Yet as they continued to climb, atmosphere growing more and more thin, he felt the raised messy stitching in the seat. The stitching from his first attempt at sewing. It had to be the same one. His helmet’s mouth plate activated, and he felt a regular air flow gust around his cheeks.

They broke the planet's gravity.

“ Where are you taking me?”

The figure looked back, wiggling once again out of Keiths grasp.

“ NO, you’re not leaving till we get some answers!” 

The figure swiveled around, kicking Keith off, he fell away, the lack of gravity causing him to spin. He wasn’t sure if turning on his jetpack would just keep the momentum of the spin going. 

“ _KEITH_!” He heard a cry from Lance before he caught a Flash of blue, mouth open, swallowing him and the figure with his bike whole.


	2. Captive

Lance stood in the control room, looking out to the training deck. They had the invisible maze on, and there captive was sitting in the middle. She was calm. Sitting as though she knew one wrong step would hurt. She kept her eyes locked onto Lance too. Which was slightly unnerving. Her helmet is off, sat behind her, and he uses the control camera to zoom in on her features. Such sharp blue eyes, and lips turned to a brooding pout. 

“ Lance. Quit gawking her.” Keith said walking up from behind.

“ I’m not.”

Keith raises an eyebrow. 

“ Really, I’m not. I don’t know. She’s pretty, but something's off.”

“ What?”

“ Are you not at all shocked with how human she looks.”

“ Allura and Coran look human. They got pointy ears, weird marks, and internally are probably different if they can get sick like Coran can.” Keith checked these off on his finger. “ I’m part Galra, but I look nothing like them.”

“ That’s different.”

“ Why is it different?”

“ I don’t know. She looks familiar.”

“ I doubt you know her Lance.”

“ Oh, I know I don’t know here. But…”

“ What?”

“ Okay, you’re gonna think I’m crazy but… she looks like.. My mom?”

“ You’re mom?”

“ Yeah. I mean but my mom has like… my hair and skin color. But her face…” Lance turned from Keith looking at the girl.

“ Lance…” Keith placed his hand on Lance's shoulder. “ You miss your family. You’re seeing things.”

Normally Lance would fight this idea, but Keith was probably write. Besides, she held the ghost image of his mother. She was far to skinny and her eyes were too sharp. It wouldn’t be the first time he saw a familiar face in a crowd.

“ Come on. She’s held in there, and I want to have a meeting about what to do with her.” 

Lance followed Keith out, but not without once last long look at the girl down below.

“ Okay questions on the table. Who is she?” Keith started, opening up the conversation to others.

“ Well I checked out her speeder. Its for sure Earth made, It looks exactly like Keith's speeder. But it’s been modded. Best bet is they have been to earth, and they found Keiths bike and took it.”

Keith visibly tensed at this.

“They might have been after the Blue lion. Your shack wasn’t far from where we found it.”

“ That aside.” Lance continued. “ What else do we know?” 

“ Without being able to test her in our pods we have no Idea of her origin, but I can say she’s not Alltean, not with those gross ears. Are you sure she couldn’t be from earth.”

“ No way. We’re super behind on space travel.” Hung added. “ The most a ship from earth could take would be very minimal speed, it would take lifetimes for her to get this far.”

“ And that Galra radio I picked up along with the escape pod was the first real alien contact we ever had. Recorded anyway.” Pidge continues.

“ Yeah, the cows from earth. No doubt aliens have stopped by. But not a lot.”

“ So she is probably alien.” Lance asked

“ It seems the most logical.” Pidge added.

Another voice hummed in thought. The table turned to look at Slav. 

“ Right! Slav!” Lance spoke excitedly. “ What is the probability that she’s from earth.”

“ From Earth? As in the planet of your own origen. The possibility of that, that the one you have captured was born on your home planet is zero.”

“ Okay so she really is for sure Alien.” Keith chimed in. It was enough for him.

“ It depends on your definition of alien.”

“ Usually as a majority of us are from Earth, we usually say all not Earthlings.” Pidge explained, leaning in on her elbows.

“ Wel-”

“ It doesn’t matter what she is. What matters is who she is.” Keith cut Slav off. Turning to him. “ Not to be rude either, but this is kind of a matter between the paladins of voltron.”  The group was getting rather tired of Slav being involved in meetings. Most of them now were about how to recover Shiro and how the Galra empire was still in operation. Slav wasn’t exactly helpful, and more the salt in the wound with facts on how they may have failed there last mission to Kill Zarcon. 

Slav nodded. Scurrying out of the room, Lance noticed though he seemed almost relieved to be out of the conversation. Lance knew Slav couldn't hold back with his facts, he could understand, hell even relate. They both kinda had a problem with sticking their foot in their mouth. 

Once he was gone Coran continued.

“ I wouldn’t right of what she is, it may be important.”

“ Important how?” Lance asked.

“ Well, it’s a stretch, but does she look like anyone you know? Spot on, no differences?”

“ Yes!” Lance cried out, the table looked at him strangely. “ Well. it's not perfect but… she… kinda looks like my mom? But when  she was younger, and her eyes and hair are a bit different.”

“ Hmmm..” Coran thought for a moment. “ She could be Dholka.”

“ Dollka?” Allura asked, she looked alarmed. “ But they vanished, in our lifetime.”

“ Perhaps they didn’t die out, and now they have had time to rebuild their numbers.”

“ OKay I’m missing something?” Hunk raised a timid hand. “ Who are Dholka.”

“ Dholka we’re a powerful evolutionary form, great minds in terms of genetic engineering. They evolved to be able to shift and change much like our own shifting abilities yet stronger. Why, I knew a Dholka who could shift a face in an hour, voice too.”

“ But I didn’t see her that long… how? And of my mother?”

“ Dholka are beings with a powerful psychic connection, it's instinctual. They can shift to a form in your mind that you wish no harm upon. They are people of peace and fear destruction, and combat it with love.”

Lance felt more sick if anything.

“ She might have regained a new form from her time on earth, or perhaps the Dholka have evolved further and can transform faster. Though perhaps a rush if she is not perfect, or maybe she is not as skilled.”

“ Will she always shift?”

“ Not necessarily. If she is trying to hide the fact of her raise, she may stick to that form. It would only take one to convince a group of her innocence anyway.”

The group looked over at Lance. He felt a growing tear strain his heart.

“ How do we find out if she really is one of them?” Keith asked.

“ Well at the moment all we can do is observe them.”

“ Fine.” Keith concluded, “ the thing stays locked on the training deck, no one talk to them.”

“ Coran, will the deck hold her? What if she shifts into something huge and deadly and breaks out.”

“ Nonsense. If they are Dholka then she is harmless, and no one can possibly break out of the training de-”

A bang sounded overhead. The group looked up. Suddenly Alarms started blaring. 

A scramble and twenty minutes later, they found the thing, detained it back in the training deck.

“ How in King Wobls crown did she escape!?” Coran said checking the inner systems.

“ Figure it out Coran. Lock the doors again.”

The thing had apparently found a maintenance vent in the far back of the room and was crawling through the main air duct. Coran closed it off as well as setting alarms in all other air ducts.

Two hours later, still no movement, and the team relaxed. 

Hunk knocked on the door to the training deck. “ Yo.. uh.. Thing? Whatever you are. I got food… if.. You’re hungry?”

Another knock sounded from the other side.

“ Great! Uh… you gotta move away from the door first.” 

Footsteps.

When Hunk opened the door, the thing had indeed moved away, but Hunk had no idea where. He stepped in timmidly.

“ Hello?”

Something behind him shifted and he looked around to see the thing swing down and through the door. Heading down the hall.  

Once captured again, it sat in the center of the room, handcuffed and with the invisible maze on. Lance found himself chuckling at that pouting look it had.  Like a scolded child. 

“ She looks so bitter.”

“ IT… can be bitter all it wants.” Keith added. “ Coran’s setting course to Degaki the Dholka planet. He thinks if they’ve rebuilt they will still be there. We can drop this thing off, and they can help us get answers.”

“ We’re going a long way from our mission to take this girl home.”

“ This thing, was the only living thing on that planet. Before any of us go diving into that black void I want answers on what we are dealing with.”

Lance looked surprised.

“ You're not doing to bad lead-”

“ Stop.” 

The air grew thick fast… Keith couldn’t seem to keep his eyes on Lance, he knew Lance was just trying to compliment him but… he just…

“ Thanks.” Keith said quietly. “ Come on. Let’s go to bed. We’re making the jump tomorrow morning.”

“ No one's gonna watch her?”

“ She’s not going anywhere.”

Lance woak to alarms in the middle of the night, running fast followed by Hunk and Pidge to the bridge. Keith was already there, with Allura and Coran as well.

“ Its escaped and made it down to the hanger! ”

“ She won't be able to leave in our ships, she won't have access.” Allura cried out. 

“ How did it get out?!” Keith snarled, not at anyone but it Pidge, Lance and Hunk flinched. Coran brought up the feed. Lance watched as the girl sat there, calm then standing up, walking around slowly.

“ You can't see it on the feed, but she’s in more or less a box. I designed a maze with no out.” 

Coran fast forwarded the tape the girl bounced on the ground.. Jumping as high as they could landing on what must have been a wall. The shock, while still affecting her, launched her up and back, she bounced off a possible other wall, one more time she landed on the ground outside, breathing heavy, and then headed towards the door.

“ From there it looks as though she hacked the doors systems.” 

“ Well she’s trapped without a ship right? We can just lock the hanger down and then we’re golden.” Hunk suggested.

Pidge sat in her seat, bringing up a few video feeds. 

“ The helmet we took from them is gone from the med bay, and the bike is missing from my tec room.”

“ MY BIKE!” Keith shouted.

Another alert sounded.

“ Oh!” Coran exclaimed. “ They left.” 

“ Maybe this is a good thing!” Hunk suggested. “ She- Its gone and that's good?”

A third alert sounded, along with a tremor that corsed through the ship.

“ Blue has left her hanger.” Coran said shock hiding any other emotion.

“ WHAT!” Lance cried out!

Moments later the crew were each in there lions. Pidge in green, Hunk in yellow, and … Keith and Lance in red. 

Lance clung to the back of Keith’s chair.

“ What is she doing!? Blue’s never been one to leave like that!”

“ Is she talking to you?”

“ NO! She’s edging me out… Look there is the girl!”

Keith looked up, Red kicking into high gear. The girl seemed to be pushing at Blues nose, a rather comical scene. As if the girl could push Blue back. 

“ Im jumping! If I can get to Blue I can try to see whats up!”

“ Okay, be careful!”

And Lance hopped out. He rocketed towards Blue he watched the girl push and smack and desperately try to get away. An echo sounded in his mind, Blues voice, but not to him. 

Paladin. 

“ _GUYS WE GOT GALRA_!” Hunk shouted. Lance spun round to see a Galra warship approaching, the smaller ships flickered against the black behind them swarming out in massive numbers.

“ _LANCE! GET BACK HERE_!” Keith called out

“ I CAN'T! I need to get inside Blue!”

The girl looked at him. Blue wouldn’t open for him. What was going on. 

Like a swelling storm the Galra fighters. Flying around them like an angry swarm of flies. Keith Hunk and Pidge had there hands full. Lance could see the castle's defences kick on. 

“ Paladins we need to get out of here NOW!” Allura called out. Lance spun back around to blue. He saw the girl… who wa petting them now. The distant echo of Blue purred. No… 

Something came flying at him.

“ _LANCE LOOK OUT_!” Pidge screamed. The girl looked his way, Lance looked toward the beam of light, something struck him, He hears his name... and  then… darkness. 

Lance woke up in a pod hours later. They had gotten away. 

“ What happened?” 

“ Uhh..” hunk started. The thing pulled you out of the way of the ion cannon by piloting blue and then scooping you and the bike up into blue's mouth. Then we all headed back to the ship.. And you were still kinda damaged from the ship that hit you.

“ WHere is she.” Lance grunted.

“ It's on the training deck.” Keith answered automatically. “ Lance you sh-”

But Lance just kept walking.  

He didn’t knock, but he did lock the door behind him. She was sat there, not looking at him, not even trying to escape any more. 

“ You saved me… you said my name.” Lance started. 

The girl looked up at him. 

“Start talking.”


	3. What Are You?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ( I have yet to fully check this chapter and am relying on a japanese computer so no good grammer check. and might not be able to for a few days due to works. I know that sucks on my part. but its one of those things where I'd rather share what I have when I can rather then wait and forget. I need that pick me up of sharing :V after all I heard once that sharing is carring lolol )
> 
> Mysterys begin to unravel every slightly as tentions run high. What is this thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The spark that has brought this back is one tired doodle of the girl's ( who no shock now the world knows)

Lance… was an easily frustrated kid. He wasn’t sure what had started it, maybe he was always a little on edge, but he could remember a time where he was blamed for something that was not his own doing, and often his parents disbelief left him in frustrated tears. He had once punched a wall, nearly breaking his hand, after Keith had been gone a week and nothing seemed to change as to how they viewed him. If anything they were worse to him, and he made no effort to hide the bruised knuckles. 

 

He had managed to keep a cool head lately. Sure, his temper rose when Shiro seemed to hold Keith over the rest of them, how he feels constantly left in the dust. But when Shiro vanished he knew he had to cut the crap. He could write out his sob story once they found Shiro. 

 

Now he was frustrated beyond belief. Every part of him ached as it seemed to push against and unmovable, invisible, wall. She was someone, someone to him, he knew that much. It was space anything could happen. 

 

But as he huffed, enraged by his adrenaline rush to get there, to her, to get answers only to meet more silence. He let out a frustrated scream that caused her to jump slightly.

 

“ LOOK!” He tried to backpedal, to explain. “ I’m trying… to be cool here. You’re weird. There is something about you I don’t know… but I should know… I know you. I know I do. Or…. I don’t know. Its space.. Maybe you're me from like… another universe where I was a girl?”

 

His tone had fallen slightly from a rage more into something of an inquisitive nature, the possibility forming as the words flew from his mouth. That didn’t sound… too ridiculous. 

 

She shook her head. 

 

“ HOly crow! Communication.” He said with an edge of sarcasm, frustrated by his idea shut down, but failed to find more answers. “ Can you do that? Can we do nods and shakes? You don't have to give me your name.”

 

He was walking a bit closer to her now, she scooched away like polarizing magnets. Lance sighed.

 

“ I’m just gonna sit… right here.” He sat down where he stood, she kept watching him. “ And you can answer or not.”

 

She was silent, unmoving, and then… the smallest of nods. 

 

“ Cool.”

 

Lance had to pause for a moment, so many questions he had were not yes or no questions. 

 

“ Okay… soo…. You know me?”

 

A small nod.

 

“ Do you know everyone else?”

 

Another nodd.

 

“ How about where we are.”

 

She seemed unsure. 

 

“ This ship, I mean.”

 

A nod.

 

“ Okay... “ He wanted to ask what made her pause… but he moved on.

 

“ Okay… is the reason you can’t talk… of your own will?”

 

She nodded. 

 

“ Okay.” His brain stretched. “ If you were to give us more… verbal answers, like your name… would that put us in harms way?”

 

She seemed unsure.

 

“ Put you in harm's way?”

 

Again unsure, but after a moment she nodded.

 

“ Okay.. thats fair.” Lance wasn’t sure if she was being honest in this moment, but somehow the idea that she was at risk if she told them too much, made Lance soften up to her. She looked… well she looked exhausted.

 

“ That planet… how long were you there?”

 

She didn’t move.

 

“ A day? Wait what was that in space terms.. A-” But she shook her head. She seemed to understand his meaning without spacer terms.

 

“ Not a day… A week?” She nodded. 

 

“ Were you stranded?” Another nod.

 

“ Oh man… ummm… are you hungry?”

 

For the first time, she didn’t look angry, or sad or shocked. Well a little shocked, but mostly her eyes widened with a pitiful look, a pleading look. Lance sighed at it.

 

“ I’ll be back.” He pointed at her. “ Stay here. Or else.” He wasn't sure what else, but it sounded good. He left, meeting Keith beyond the door. 

 

“ Hey Keith… gonna grab some grub for h-”

 

“ You can’t do this to yourself.”

 

“ what do you mean?”

 

“ Remember what Coran said she was… she’s a Dholka. They use a psychic link to get into your head… she’s messing with you.”

 

“ Keith… I don’t think she is.”

 

Keith glared at him.

 

“ Look, why would she stay silent? If she was trying to get into my head, to mess with me, she would bring up my memories of family, speak spanish… actually mess with me. All I am getting now are some simple answers and a head ache.”

 

Lance made to push past him, heading towards his room to change, he was still in the pod suit and while it felt comfortable on his skin, it wasn’t exactly warm. Keith stopped him, a hand wrapped around lances forearm. He looked as though he wanted to say something, but instead he just gave Lance a frustrated but concerned look. Lance turned and patted Keith roughly on the shoulder.

 

“ I’m okay. I promise.” and he left.

 

Dressed back in his earth cloths, he joined the others who seemed to be in the kitchen. Lance was excited to see that hunk was cooking. 

 

“ Lance! Perfect!” Coran exclaimed, and Lance held of making a joke that he heard that all the time. 

 

“ I’m just grabbing food for the prisoner.”

 

“ Even better!” Coran pulled him over. “ We have a test to see if she really is Dholka.”

 

He raised an eyebrow, but let Coran continue while Hunk fixed him a plate.

 

“ We are lucky to have it, but the Dholka are extremely allergic to a ultra rare rock mineral found only on the most rare of planets. Ground down and when ingested it causes the eater to revert back to their normal form.” Coran presented the rock on the table. It was a tiny thing. Hunk walked over, picking it up.. And licking it.

 

“ its salt.”

 

“ Woah for real?” Lance reached over, swiping it out. He licked it and was instantly hit with a salt that made his face screwed up. He laughed passing it to pidge.

 

“ I'm not gonna lick that. You both licked it twice already.”

 

“ fine! You can have your lick direct.” Lance joked, bending down to lick a stripe across Pidge’s cheek. She shrieked and punched him.

 

“ UGH, I bet you’re the worst brother!” she groned, wiping her cheek roughly with her sleve. 

 

Lance smiled. Some how having the girl, or thing or whatever, out of sight released a clamp on his heart. He saw Keith walk in with a distinct sour attitude about him, and felt the need to bother him in the best way. 

 

“ Keithy boy! Take a lick of this!” He said, bouncing over to sit on the spot of table Keith had placed himself in front of. He looked at the stone for a second before diving forward and licking, as he shot away gagging, Lance roared with laughter. 

 

“ Enough!” Coran said, snatching the stone away. “ That is a very valuable material, a single ounce like this can cost up to 8,000 gact.” 

 

“ Seriously?” Pidge chimed in. “It's super common on earth.”

 

“ Yeah it's the most basic of seasoning when it comes to cooking.” Hunk added.

 

“ It also helps catch ghosts.” Keith said, seemingly without thinking.

 

“ What are you, an episode of ghost facers.” Lance equipped with a dry look. Keiths face reddened and he pouted, looking away. 

 

While Pidge and Hunk told Coran about salt on earth, Lance noticed Keith's mouth seemed to keep twitching, most likely in the after taste of salt.

 

“ Not a fan of the savory?” Lance asked.

 

“ No, I just don’t like to eat salt. Tastes like fastfood fries. Way too salty.”

 

“ If you want.. I can give you something sweet.” He winked, and Keith froze all for but his neck, which rotated his face to look at Lance. Lance hadn’t meant it, well he had kinda.. But also kinda not? It was an old line of his… and it was a habit to use when he saw someone attrac- uhh… good look- ummm…. Ho-......... pretty. He would settle for pretty. Keith was a pretty boy. That much his brain could handle. Lance looked at Keith's wide, purplish eyes, and red face, his mouth was held so tight that his licks seemed to be sucked back inward… like a black hole had opened up in keith's mouth. 

 

“ Uh…..” Lance had no save, and honestly he was more focused on putting out the spark of interest at Keith's reaction, there were more pressing matters to attend to. But still he couldn’t stop looking at Keith, as though they were arguing with their gaze, and whoever looked away would take the blame for the awkward situation. Lance felt his hand bounce, and Keith's expression shifted from offended shock, to a curios study, and Lance wished someone would just end his suffering. He wouldn’t do it himself, he didn’t want to lose. 

 

“ Well… this is awkward.” Lance jumped, looking down at Pidge who had just appeared. “ I need you to do something.” She asked in a dull tone.

 

“ Yes pidgey dear?” Lance said, trying to pull the tone away from awkward, and back to comedy.

 

“ take this to our prisoner.. It's got salt, but also some knock out drug. So no matter what she is she won't flip out and we can get her in a pod.”

 

Lance took the plate. He didn’t want to hand it over to be honest, he didn’t want to see what creature she would become, if any. And if not… well…Lance stood anyway, starting to make his way out of the room. 

 

“ Wait.” keith stood up so suddenly, that Hunk, who had had been putting out the teams own dinner jumped, nearly dropping Keiths.

 

“ Maybe I should take it to it.” Keith offered.

 

“ Uh… No offence Keith. But I don’t think she trusts any of us… you the least.” Pidge explained

 

“ So what… she trusts Lance?” Keith protested, gesturing at Lance, who was a little offended. 

 

“ It is the trait of his lion.” Allura pulled the attention over to her, standing to make her voice clear and more powerful. “ The Blue lion represents Loyalty, trust, it is the heart of the blue lion that unites the five through the worst times. Surely you have noticed Lance’s efforts to keep us together with Shiro gone.”

 

The room all together looked rather shocked, and Lance, not used to receiving compliments or attention at this level felt as though he had permanently swallowed his tongue. For once, he would rather not bask in the princesses praise, he’d rather sink into the nearest wall and forever become apart of the ship. After all.. He was just doing… what anyone else would do… right?

 

“ I- We know that but....” Keith started, Shocking lance twice over. “ Just because he’s trusting, and trustable doesn’t mean we can just toss him into a room with an unknown thing and hope that it doesn't kill it when it finds out what we’re up to.

 

“ Dude, she would have done already right? Lance was in there with her for a while, and they were kinda communicating?” Hunk offered wishing to defuse the tension, Keith just turned his angry glare onto him.

 

“ Keith.” Lance called out. Keith looked betrayed, and a little hurt, but Lance gave him the look they agreed was his silent cue to ‘cool it hothead’ and Keith deflated. “ You can join me if you want, but I’m not sure how she will take to you.”

 

Keith seemed to agree, but he lagged behind for a moment, head down as Lance left. Just before he passed through the door he heard Pidge whisper something, and Keith answer back with his usual ‘shut it.’ A few quick steps and they were walking side by side, down the hall to the training room. 

 

“ Sorry…” Keith said, though it didn’t sound sincere, more out of habit. Lance sighed. 

 

“ You’re gonna have to learn to have some faith in me-”

 

“ I do.” Keith seemed pained. 

 

“ You have an odd way of showing it… you think I’ve been going in there unarmed?” Lance pulled his jacket aside to show the small portable form of their bayard, which hung from his pocket like a keychain. 

 

Keith seemed to relax slightly, and save his protests.

 

The doors slid opened, and the girl looked up to see the two of them walk in. She seemed to almost smile at the sight of Lance, but scooted back two feet, fixing a glare on Keith once he came into her line of sight. 

 

“ Hey! Brought you some food.” Lance approached and Keith followed, the girl scooted back on the floor for each step taken towards her. Lance paused, looking between the two. 

 

“ Keith… back against the door.”

 

“ WHat? Why.”

 

“ You're too uh…” Something nice? “ Cool? She is intimidated by your swagger. Get back please.”

Keith didn’t buy it, but he still marched back, aggressively leaning against the wall in what he supposed was meant to be a relaxed position. 

 

Lance continued moving forward, she still watched Keith, but no longer moved back. Once Lance had about two feet between them he sat down, sliding the plate to her. 

 

“ Eat up. Hunk can make more if you’re hungry.” He tried to seem casual, and willed his hands to stop shaking as she timidly picked up the plate and sniffed it. She took a small bite. Her eyes widened, and then rolled to the back of her head before closing, her head tipped back and Lance could hear her voice hum… in a moan of pleasure.

 

She dug in. Tilting the plate back and sliding it down into her face. Lance had never seen a girl eat like that. Even his sisters seemed to always eat with a delicate air. This girl looked as if she could swallow the plate if she didn’t stop. Lance fished a drink pouch out of his pocket he had grabbed from the table and tossed it over to her she guzzled it happily. So engrossed with eating, she didn’t notice Keith come away from the wall and stand by Lance.

 

“ How long will it take.” Keith whispered.

 

“ If it does at all… this is a test.” Lance whispered back, though he wasn’t sure he needed too. “ Coran said that the salt should affect her before the other thing… so… ah…” Lance looked in surprise as the girl's shoulders seemed to slump, and she wobbled, rotating around like a joystick, the momentum of her more energetic actions still echoing through her, before she slumped over on her left side. The plate clattered to the side as Lance stood to look over at her. She was asleep, and surprisingly still herself. 

 

Keith let out a huff of frustration, leaving to probably alert the others. Lance couldn’t help but stay by her side as he noticed she had the unmistakeable signs of someone who had been crying. When… He didn’t know. But the idea made him reach over and brush some stray food from her cheeks. He was, for a moment, tempted to drape his jacket over her form, but he restrained. It seemed like if the others showed up, the obvious sign of care would tick Keith off even further. Lance may care for this girl, what she was, in the moment; but he had a team to look after. 

 

He heard a few notes of a song, broken and incomplete, rise from the girl. She still seemed to be asleep, but singing. The notes were disjointed, but with long enough pauses between that Lance figured were missing pieces of a melody. He was reminded of his youngest sister, who would pass out on the sofa after a long day of playing together. It felt as though he had swallowed a cold spike down his throat to his heart and he turned away from the slumbering person. 

 

 

The group crowded around the cryochamber, watching the figure inside while Pidge and Coran reviewed the data coming in. Lance had an odd sense of deja vu. Only this time it was less a concern worry for Shiro, but a tense uncertainty that filled the space between them. A long silence held as each person seemed to be lost in their own evaluations and theories. Lance couldn’t help but crave Shiro's opinion on the matter. Not that Keith wasn’t being a good leader while he brooded off in the far corner of the room, but Shiro had that tricky memory thing. Shiros lost memory, while not funny, had inspired a rather dark joke in there first weeks of Voltron. Take a drink every time Shiro ‘remembers’. It was understandable his memory was fried, but sometimes it was almost cheesy how suddenly he would remember something and how helpful the new information was. Just once, Lance wished Shiro would have a flashback to breakfast or something. 

 

Well.. now he wanted a Shiro flashback about random humanoids who almost look like loved ones. 

 

Maybe she was a bread of Galra spy. Not a full shape shifter, but like Allura could slightly alter how they appear, for reasons of safety or to make nice. 

 

But she has still been to earth, maybe she was abducted? The idea worried him. What if more had been abducted. If she had been, it would explain the mistrust of Voltron. Even Keith's bike, which might have been taken with her. But how did she get away from her captors. Is that why she wasn’t sharing her name… incase there was some bounty on her?

 

Lance looked over at Pidge just as she let loose a long yawn, her mouth stretching to the point where Lance though she might dislocate her jaw. He looked around. Everyone looked exhausted. 

 

“ Okay…” Lance said suddenly. “ It’s been a long day… night…. Whatever. We haven’t slept since she escaped and we had that fight with the Galra. I think it's time for bed.”

 

“ What about the tests?” Hunk asked.

 

“ She’ll be here in the morning.” Lance answered back, looking at her.

 

“ Lance is right.” Coran added. “ She was fairly malnourished, the pod is taking that into account and healing her for the time being. You can have a couple of hours sleep and she will remain locked in.”

 

“ Well.. that’s enough for me.” Hunk exclaimed, cracking his back in a long stretch before picking Pidge up by the scruff of her shirt and rotating her to face the door out. He then tapped her shoulder and she started walking, not looking up from the holo display she was holding. Hunk followed her, and soon Coran and Allura had left too. Keith seemed to remain stuck in the corner. For a moment, Lance thought Keith was just being his usual stubborn self, but on approche ne noticed the soften features, relaxed shoulders, and slumped head. He seemed to have fallen asleep at some point, still standing up. What an idiot.

 

Lance carefully managed to uncross Keith's arms, only waking the boy slightly, and moved one over around his neck before guiding Keith forward. Keiths movements were slow if any, his feet dragged and the weight pulling Lance to bend sideways was causing unpleasant pains in his spine. He huffed, bending down to loop his other arm under Keith's knees, sweeping him up in one grand moment. 

 

It wasn’t his first time carrying someone like this. He had done it tons of times with his siblings, and Pidge as well during the heat of battle. He could just manage to pick up Hunk like this for a joke, and he never had the honor of cradling Allura or Shiro. But something about this moment stood out besides the fact that it was Keith.

 

He was light… super light. Crazy super light. Like wasn’t muscle supposed to be heavy? He had seen Keith fight… he figured the dude was sinny ripped. But maybe that was a Galra thing?

 

Keith was also, cuddly. The second Keith was in Lance’s arms the boy rotated and pushed his face into Lance's chest. Lance felt as though someone had just laid a hot towel over his face and neck as he tried to keep his composer to not drop Keith. Half of him was screaming in delight for sake of blackmail. Another more quiet part of him was just delighted by the feeling, but the chance to study Keith's face up close, without his brow knitted, without his piercing gaze judging you. 

 

Once in Keith's room, Lance realised that Keith had a rather tight grip on Lances t-shirt. He groaned, now trying to nudge Keith awake enough that he would relinquish his grip for a moment, but Keith was passed out. If not for the subtle rises of his chest and the soft breathing, Lance would have assumed him dead. He pouted at the sleeping boy and then shrugged out of his jacket, letting it pull at the floor, before kneeling down to shimmy out of his shirt. 

 

Once freed, Keith turned, bringing the shirt with him. Lance was too tired to be excited about the prospect of blackmail, only Pidge had energy for that. So he picked up his jacket, pulling it on, and left. He would sleep in his pajama shirt anyway.

**Author's Note:**

> While I'm not saying my writing is super mysterious, I wanna avoid tagging until I know for sure it won't spoil stuff. I'm attempting to write this more in the style of an episode/ string of episodes.


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